Auntie Pam’s Country Store partners with Bosa Foods

Following a sternly worded demand from an attorney representing Trader Joes that she no longer resell their products in her store, Auntie Pam’s Country Store owner Pamala Sheppard has turned to a Vancouver landmark to stock her shelves.

On October 4 both Sheppard and Brewster’s Fine Foods owners Sandra and Richard Procter received notification that Trader Joes considers the resale of their products a threat to their “goodwill and reputation as the company does not control the handling and sale of the items. Both businesses complied with the grocery giant’s demand.

Sheppard said she had chosen to sell the Trader Joes items in order to give her customers access to reasonably priced organic choices. She will continue to do so, she said, through a partnership with Bosa Foods. Founded in 1957 on Victoria Drive in Vancouver, Bosa Foods specializes in importing high quality Italian and Mediterranean specialties.

“They have the best dried pasta you’ve ever had in your whole life,” Sheppard said. Auntie Pam’s Country Store will also be stocking Lavazza coffee, cookies and chocolates, olives, oils, jarred peppers, and tomato puree and paste, along with a growing selection she will be bringing in from Bosa. “We will be emphasizing organics and the standards in Italy are very high for all products,” she said.

The store’s annual Christmas Party and Cookie Contest this weekend will be the perfect time to check out the store’s new product line. “We will be taking Canadian at par for everything in the store,” she said. “It’s the world’s best sale ever!”

The event runs from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, December 17 and is a fundraiser for the food bank. Bakers can deliver their wares to the store on the day of the contest and Sheppard recommends two dozen to ensure there are enough for all the tasters/judges. “More cookies means more votes,” she said.

A donation to the food bank earns you a ballot to taste and pick your favorite. “They can vote as much as they want as long as they keep donating,” Sheppard said. Beverages will be provided to wash down the cookies and there will be music by Delaney Rose and a visit from Santa.

The top three cookies will each get a pound of Belgian chocolates and first prize will also get dinner for two at the Compass Rose while second and third place will get a gift certificate for Auntie Pam’s Country Store.